My Beloved

You're My Beloved
You're My Bride
To sing over you is My delight
Come away with Me, My love


Under My mercy
Come and wait
Till we are standing face to face
I see no stain on you, My child

You're beautiful to Me
So beautiful to Me

I sing over you My song of peace
Cast all your cares down at My feet
Come and find your rest in Me

I'll breathe My life inside of you
I'll bear you up on eagle's wings
And hide you in the shadow of My strength
I'll take you to My quiet waters
I'll restore your soul
Come rest in Me and be made whole

You're My beloved
You're My bride
To sing over you is My delight
Come away with Me, My love

On Saturday, I had the privilege of singing this song at the wedding of two of my friends, Brian and Emily. Just as their wedding was beautiful in their own, unique way, so is this song. I am now forever in love with song and the beauty, peace, and truth it holds, as well as the picture it paints for me. The song was released on two different albums; here is a snippet from the newer version. Enjoy!

THE little THINGS IN LIFE

I am thinking that perhaps I should tell you how this blog earned its name.

The first reason is obvious:  it's a play on words because I am little. It is difficult to remember a time when this word did not describe me. It has shaped my childhood and how I relate to people--short people tend not to want to grow up. :)  Four feet and ten (and a half) inches may not be short to some, but it is usually the first thing people notice about me and has often been a conversation starter. In middle school, I became somewhat agitated that boys would never even look at me because they probably thought I was in elementary school. :) But as I've grown up (in age, at least), I have learned to see this as a blessing and as something God has given me to make me exactly who He wants me to be. I could not imagine being any other way and, although it still has its disadvantages and challenges at times, I think I would now choose being "little" over any other option.

The second reason is simply as it sounds:  I want to celebrate the little things in life. I don't want to get so caught up in to-do lists and bank statements, busyness and boredom that I forget that I have a Father in heaven that gives me the very breaths that I breathe. I also don't want to make life so complicated that I forget that the good news of Jesus Christ is so simple that even a three-year old can understand it. Sometimes I tend to make my life more difficult than God intended.

Someday, down the road, if God wants us to have children, I imagine that I will want to share with the people I love all of the details about my little ones. The hilarious stories of their antics and how much they are stretching me and growing me each day, as well as how simply adorable their little feet, little hands, little eyes...well, you get the picture--just how very cute they are.

For now, I think I just share a small list of all of the "little" things that I love:

• Waking up from a Sunday afternoon nap and knowing you have nothing that has to be done except going back to sleep that evening.
• A good book that is impossible to put down because you just have to know what's going to happen next.
• The crinkles in the corners of my husband's eyes when he smiles. :)
• The crazy family God has given me.
• Soaking up the sun while enjoying the quiet beauty of the outdoors.
• Finding a new "favorite song of all time". 
• Coffee with a friend (or rather a little bit of coffee with some creamy, sugary goodness).
• Having brothers and sisters all over the place that I know I can count on.
• The things my husband does that make me laugh, and the fact that when he sees me laughing it makes him do them all the more.
• The best friends in the whole entire world. Period. End of story.
• Discovering anew my Savior's love for me.

Bunji-wun-gee-fun-gee!

It seems like the only activity in my near future is this: pack, pack, pack...clean, clean, clean...pack, pack, pack. All leading up to the inevitable unpacking. 

So, as I pack, I like to dream of our new place (rental that it may be) and how clever I am going to be with decorating and hospitality and such. Like the toss pillows I want to make for our couch or the curtains I want to buy or the double bed I want to get a good deal on to put in our "guest bedroom". Baahhh...stuff!

If asked, I would not say that I am materialistic. But, as I heard in church this morning, you can love money in two ways--by spending it or by hoarding it. I think that it is easy to see yourself in the first category, quickly jump into the second one, and forget that there may be a third:  giving it. I don't mean that you should give away all of your money. Sometimes, we may have to give up all of our money in a physical sense; however, I think that all of us at all times should be viewing "our money" as what it truly is--God's provision for us--and give it back to Him. I have been thinking a lot about stewardship lately in different aspects of my life--my money, my time, and my body. If I truly believe that God has given me everything that I have and that it is more than I deserve, it shouldn't hurt so much to lose it. Or be such a struggle to submit to His agenda.

Money, entertainment, my wants and desires...all of these things seem to have this power to distract us from what is truly pleasurable--delighting in our Treasure. As Matthew 13:44 says, "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." I have always loved this verse because of the reckless abandonment of the man. He willingly gave up everything he had because he had found something that truly satisfied!

Think of the things that take you out of the position of abiding in Christ. You say, “Yes, Lord, just a minute—I still have this to do. Yes, I will abide as soon as this is finished, or as soon as this week is over. It will be all right, Lord. I will abide then.” Get moving—begin to abide now. In the initial stages it will be a continual effort to abide, but as you continue, it will become so much a part of your life that you will abide in Him without any conscious effort. Make the determination to abide in Jesus wherever you are now or wherever you may be placed in the future.

I think what Chambers is saying here is that we need to put in the work of laying aside whatever it is in our lives that is drawing us away from Christ. Push forward into an abiding relationship with God, and let that become your first desire, your first instinct, and the first place to which you run.

P.S. Since I obviously cannot be wholly serious ever, here is the reasoning behind the title of this post.

The Trip is Never Long

"To your friend's house the trip is never long." --J. Wallace Day

Over the last couple of weekends, I have had the opportunity to visit some friends that I don't usually get to see. Memorial Day I drove a couple of hours to visit my lovely friend, Erin! She recently bought a house, so we de-cluttered the garage, got some items sent off for a garage sale, and dusted and vacuumed the place (yes, we vacuumed her garage because, to her delight, the garage is carpeted--but not for long). We also ate some good food together, watched a good movie, and had good conversation--just like always!

We're so funny!

This past weekend, a group from our church went to the Omaha zoo, which I had never been to before. It rained in the morning, which made for a very steamy day. We had a great time, though, because we got to see our wonderful friend, Vern! Besides all the fun we had at the zoo, we also got to see some sand art at Omaha's "Sand in the City" charity event that Vern and his engineering firm participated in. Fun!

We were also able to eat out that evening at a little restaurant, "Amsterdam Falafel and Kabob". 

Oh. My. Word.

Amazing! They had a very small menu, but what they served was delicious. Jordan had a kabob (which was more like a gyro, in my mind), I had a falafel (which I have always wanted to try), and we split an order of curry fries. Yes, curry fries [angelic chorus cheers]. I cannot wait to make a batch next time I make something casual from my Indian cookbook.

I am so thankful for enduring friendships!

I really do have a funny husband. :)

A Righteous Conversation

Today I had an interesting conversation with someone who came into my workplace. Unfortunately, work kept the conversation from going too deep (blast you, work!). He had a book with him about Judaism, so I asked him about it. As it turned out, he attends a "Christian" college in Kansas City (I say "Christian" because I have no idea what that means to him). He told me that he is reading the book because he not only finds Jewish culture interesting, but he is intrigued by their views of righteousness. 

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, how do you really know you're righteous?" He replied. "Lots of people say, 'Oh, I believe in Jesus!', but what then? I prayed for 15 minutes today, but I prayed for 30 minutes yesterday, so I must not be as righteous today as I was yesterday. I read my Bible for one hour today, but was that enough?"

I then went on to say to him that Jesus told us that what He really desires is a transformation of our hearts and minds. That the Pharisees had gotten stuck on their own righteousness and allowed their hearts to grow corrupt, and Jesus had called them out on it.

I really wish that we had had more time to talk. I would have told him what Jesus said, "Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:29-30). And Paul said, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery" (Galatians 5:1). When we meditate on what Christ has done for us on the cross and allow His grace to overwhelm us, we can (as we learn about and grow closer to Him through His Word) see God and see ourselves clearly. We can see that through His death, we were freed from sin and its penalties. We are no longer slaves to sin! This means that we are no longer slaves to a righteousness we could never attain!

I'll say that again.

We are no longer slaves to a righteousness we could never attain.

Hallelujah! Romans 6 is an awesome passage for this. It actually says that, as Christians, we do become slaves to righteousness...not to obedience, but slaves to God leading to the fruit of sanctification, i.e. righteousness. What is really amazing about this is that it is not an outward show of goodness, but an inward transformation. God can mold us into "little Christs"--the real meaning of the word "Christian". And as we become more like His Son, we see more of our loving Father; as our hearts begin to desire what His desires, we see more of His purpose and plan; and as our lives reflect Him and our lives align with His will, we begin to see fruit in our lives and a joy that comes from true contentment in being and doing exactly what we were created for--glorifying God by being satisfied in Him. 

Wow.

Well, maybe I'll just print this out and put it in my pocket in case I ever run into this person again. :) Or, maybe I should just pray.

God is glorified not only by His glory's being seen, but by its being rejoiced in. When those that see it delight in it, God is more glorified than if they only see it.... He that testifies his idea of God's glory [does not] glorify God so much as he testifies also his approbation of it and his delight in it. --Jonathan Edwards